Multi-purpose earth moving machine



Nov. 17, 1964 E. WIEGER 3,157,238

MULTI-PURPOSE EARTH MOVING MACHINE Filed Dec. 6, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 17, 1964 E. WIEGER 3,157,288

MULTI-PURPOSE EARTH MOVING MACHINE Filed Dec. 6, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet '2 United States Patent 3,157,288 MULTi-EURPQSE EARTH MGVING MACHINE Ernst Wieger, Budericher Strasse 13, Neuss (Rhine), Germany Filed Dec. 6, 1961, Ser. No. 157,393 Claims priority, application Germany Dec. 8, 1960 3 Claims. (Cl. 212-42) The present invention relates to a multi-purpose earth moving machine which may also be used for other purposes, e.g. as a grab bucket excavator.

Grab bucket excavators are known which have a boom supported by a rotary frame or the like and adjustable as to height, while lifting and opening cables pass over the free end of such boom. With these devices, the lifting cables are wound on and unwound from a reversible drum, whereas the opening cables of the excavator pass over a second likewise reversible drum. Aside from the necessity of providing two drums, these known arrangements require that the opening cables must be given out or taken in in conformity with the lowering and lifting movement of the bucket. In addition thereto, a movement is to be performed for the opening and closing of the grab bucket.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a grab bucket excavator with a boom tiltable as to height on a rotary frame or the like while the lifting and opening cables for the bucket are passed over the free end of the boom, and while the movement of the lifting cable is effected with simple means.

It is another object of this invention to provide a multi-purpose earth moving machine of the abovementioned character which is simple in construction and operation.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specification in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 illustrates a side view of a grab bucket excavator according to the present invention.

FIGURE 2 shows the front end of a boom of a multipurpose earth moving machine according to the invention drawn at enlarged scale.

FIGURE 3 shows the boom of FIGS. 1 and 2 with a scraping bucket on the free end thereof.

The arrangement according to the present invention is characterized primarily in that the lifting cable and the opening cable for the bucket are adapted to be wound upon a common winding drum, and in that the opening cable is adjustable as to its effective length over the lifting cable. The adjustment of the opening cable may be effected by means of a pulley which is supported by an adjustable piston rod and about which the opening cable is looped, said pulley being adjustable in longitudinal direction of said opening cable.

According to a further development of the present invention, the just mentioned arrangement is applicable in a particularly advantageous manner to a multi-purpose earth moving machine which is provided with a boom adjustable as to heighton a rotary frame. Such a multipurpose machine may be provided with planing or leveling device for planing or leveling the ground and may be employed with a bucket for producing ditches or building excavations. Such multi-purpose machines may also be employed for producing embankments, for laying pipes, as fork lifter, as digging machines in stone quarries, in the construction of tunnels, and in mining operations In conformity with the invention, such a machine has the opening cable of a grab bucket passed around the free end of the piston rod. Advantageously, the lifting rope is passed about a rotatable pulley mounted at the end of the boom of the machine.

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Referring now to the drawing in detail, the excavator shown therein comprises an under-carriage 1 having mounted thereon the rotating frame 2 which, in turn, carries the control cab 3 and the power plant 4. While the rotatable frame 2 is rotatable parallel to the surface of the ground, the overhanging beam or boom 5 has that end thereof which is adjacent the rotatable frame 3 adjustable relative thereto as to height, in a manner known per se.

In the embodiment illustrated in the drawing, the boom 5 comprises two sections, viz. the section 6 and the section 7, said two sections being telescopically adjustable relative to each other. The free end of the boom section '7 may be provided with pulleys 32 and 33 receiving the opening and lifting or supporting cables 16 and 11, respectively. Lifting cable 11 is passed from the head 12 of the grab bucket 13 about a second pulley 29 and pulley 33 to a pulley 14 on the boom section 6. From pulley 14, the cable passes around drum 15 of a winch or a similar winding device. Similarly, an opening cable 16 is passed around a third pulley 31, a pulley 31) on bolt 28 on ram 25 and over pulley 32 to pulleys 13, 20 on the boom and then, likewise, to drum 15. Piston rod or ram 25 is adjustable by cylinder 21 in longitudinal direction of cable 16. Cylinder. 21 is tiltably mounted in the boom by trunnions 21a.

Pulley 29 has a support bolt 24 in an extension of the boom while the other pulley 31 is on the end of the extension.

When drum 15 is rotated, the grab bucket 13 is raised or lowered through the intervention of the lifting cable 11 while the opening cable 16 carries out the same movement inasmuch as it is connected on one hand to the grab bucket 13, and on the other hand passes around drum 15.

If in a certain position of the grab bucket 13, the grab bucket arms 13a, 13b are to be opened, it is merely necessary to actuate the piston rod 25 with pulley 31) to thereby adjust the effective position of the opening cable with regard to the lifting cable 11. Corresponding resilient means 22 such as springs, on the grab bucket will return the grab bucket arms 13a, 13b to their starting or closing position. When the opening cable 16, by adjustment of pulley 30 by movement of ram 25 has likewise returned to its starting position, no effective difference in length between cables 11 and 16 will occur.

FIGURE 3 shows the same multi-purpose machine as in FIGURES 1 and 2 with a scraping bucket being mounted on the boom member and the cables 11, 16 being rolled on the winch drum. For this purpose the grab bucket 13 is removed from the free end of the cables 11, 16 in known manner. The pulleys 29 to 33 can be left at the corresponding machine parts or can be removed. The bolts 24, 2% of pulleys 29 and 3t) serve for pivotally connecting bucket 23 to the boom member and to ram 25.

While, when employing a scraping bucket or planing or leveling member or the like, as is shown in FIGURE 3, piston rod 25 will adjust such working tool, piston rod 25 will, when employing the principle of the invention with a grab bucket, serve for opening and closing the grab bucket suspended on the lifting cable 11. To this end, merely a few pulleys are required for converting the planing or leveling machine into a grab excavator.

It will be seen that bolt 28 in the projecting end'of ram 25 forms a horizontal pivot axis for receiving pulley means for use with a grab bucket and also for connection to a point on scraping bucket 23. The support bolt 28 of pulley 3t and the support bolt of pulley 33 form other pivot axes for receiving pulley means for use with a grab bucket and also for connection to a point on scraping bucket 23. The pivot axes are in a common vertical plane and cables 11 and 16 are thus coplanar.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular constructions shown in the drawings, but also comprises any modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An earth moving machine which comprises in combination; supporting means, a boom member having one end pivoted to said supporting means on a horizontal axis whereby its free end is adjustable in a vertical plane, means connected to the free end of the boom member and forming a first horizontal pivot axis thereon, a ram member arranged on the boom member at the free end thereof and reciprocable lengthwise of the boom member, said ram member having its one end projecting beyond the free end of said boom member, means connected to said one end of said ram member and forming a second horizontal pivot axis thereon vertically spaced from said first pivot axis, said first pivot axis and said second pivot axis being adapted respectively to receive coplanar pulley means for supporting lifting and opening cables for a grab bucket and alternately for connection to spaced points of a scraping bucket, and means for reciprocating said ram member for operating said opening cable and for manipulating said scraping bucket.

2. An earth moving machine according to claim 1 in which the free end of said boom member comprises means forming a third horizontal pivot axis in parallel spaced relation to said first pivot axis and to said second pivot axis and vertically spaced from said second pivot axis and also adapted for having pulley means mounted thereon, said last mentioned pulley means when mounted on said third pivot axis cooperating with a pulley means on said first pivot axis to support a lifting cable leading to a grab bucket having an opening cable supported by pulley means on said second pivot axis.

3. An earth moving machine according to claim 2 in which said one end of said ram member is located above said first pivot axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,000,677 Hayward Aug. 15, 1911 2,196,649 Waite Apr. 9, 1940 2,808,166 Stine Oct. 1, 1957 2,839,067 Wilkinson June 17, 1958 

1. AN EARTH MOVING MACHINE WHICH COMPRISES IN COMBINATION; SUPPORTING MEANS, A BOOM MEMBER HAVING ONE END PIVOTED TO SAID SUPPORTING MEANS ON A HORIZONTAL AXIS WHEREBY ITS FREE END IS ADJUSTABLE IN A VERTICLA PLANE, MEANS CONNECTED TO THE FREE END OF THE BOOM MEMBER AND FORMING A FIRST HORIZONTAL PIVOT AXIS THEREON, A RAM MEMBER ARRANGED ON THE BOOM MEMBER AT THE FREE END THEREOF AND RECIPROCABLE LENGTHWISE OF THE BOOM MEMBER, SAID RAM MEMBER HAVING ITS ONE END PROJECTING BEYOND THE FREE END OF SAID BOOM MEMBER, MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID ONE END OF SAID RAM MEMBER AND FORMING A SECOND HORIZONTAL PIVOT AXIS THEREON VERTICALLY SPACED FROM SAID FIRST 